Valeriya Kozlova brought home the fourth straight award for the volleyball team, after Diana Akopova won the last three in a row. Overall, it's the 12th award for volleyball, including Mickisha Hurley (1995, 1996), Cindy Yuan (1998, 1999), Karla Bersano (2002), Fernanda Brino (2004, 2005), Camilla Pagnan (2009), Julia Teixeira (2011) as well as Akopova (2023, 2024, 2025). Kozlova won six major awards, and 18 total awards, during her rookie season. She was named the Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year in the Sunshine State Conference and by the AVCA in the South Region, Player of the Year in the region by D2CCA and national Freshman of the Year by the AVCA. She led the nation in points per set, ranking second in the nation. She was second in the SSC in hitting percentage and kills per set. Kozlova made SSC history becoming the first volleyball player to be named both the Freshman and Player of the Year in the same season.
